The debate over Lexington’s urban expansion plan continues

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The final city utility boundary plan is expected to be adopted in a little less than two weeks. The city council issued an order to expand the boundary in June 2023.

“The main goal is to make sure there is housing,” said Jim Duncan, director of the planning department.

He said the 2,800-hectare area will have five zones.

“This area can then be developed for residential and commercial purposes, can receive city services and is available for urban development,” Duncan said.

Community member Margaret Graves told the Planning Commission during public comment at Thursday’s meeting that it was important to ensure housing was affordable. She also questioned the $570 million price tag for infrastructure.

“How is this paid for?” Graves asked. “I think this is something that the planning commission and council need to look at carefully and explain to the community because this is going to be a very expensive undertaking.”

Lexington is projected to grow by 48,000 people by 2045, according to Thursday’s presentation. One topic raised during the meeting is concurrency. Duncan explained the parallelism by saying that a certain percentage of commercial properties are located in the same area as residential areas.

“This is a bad idea that is inconvenient and needs to be removed,” said community member Todd Johnson.

Others felt a little more positive.

“Because of the walkability, the quality of life and the nature of these types of urban developments, I think this would be a great addition to Lexington,” community member Frank Becker said.

At the Oct. 31 meeting, the Planning Commission will respond to public comments and is expected to vote to adopt the plan. The meeting will take place at 1:30 p.m. in the council chamber.